Alþingi, the Icelandic parliament, voted last week to have the minister of foreign affairs apply, on Iceland’s behalf, for membership to the European Space Agency (ESA).

IIIM supports Parliament’s application and believes it would open up new opportunities in research and co-operation in the high tech sector.

Space agencies around the world are at the forefront of designing and utilizing high technology. Astrological research, space travel, the design and management of space stations, energy research and theories about the origin of the universe all build on the latest technology, especially software. In space science software is necessary for data collection and data processing, the making of simulations, autonomous steering of vehicles, laser beams, telescopes and measuring equipment. Continue reading Iceland to become a member of the European Space Agency →

The latest issue of IIIM’s newsletter is out now!

In this issue we cover the benefits and challenges of interdisciplinary research. Interdisciplinary research empowers researchers to have more than one viewpoint on a problem and tackle the questions that remain unanswered in a particular field from new angles bringing scientific disciplines forward.

Dr. Ipke Wachsmuth, professor of Artificial Intelligence  and former director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF) at Bielefeld University in Germany, shares his experience on interdisciplinary research undertaken at the institute.

Also get acquainted with IIIM’s collaboration model for startups and high-tech companies and hear what our collaborators have to say about us.

Happy reading!

CADIA lecture: Embodiment versus Memetics Intelligence: Language, and the Place of Robots in Human Society

Speaker: Joanna Bryson
When and where: Friday the 16th of September at 14:00 in room M109

The last few years have seen a growing public awareness of the pervasiveness of artificial intelligence (AI). Yet somehow this awareness has translated into a fear projected into the (near) future rather than an understanding or concern about how the world is already being changed by our technology.   Continue reading LANGUAGE, AND THE PLACE OF ROBOTS IN HUMAN SOCIETY →

Today the CoCoMaps project, a collaboration between IIIM and CMLabs, officially lunched! We are very exited to set off on this journey after months of preparation.

The aim of the project is to endow robots with the skills to communicate with humans in real time using natural dialogue.

If successful these improved communicational skills of the robots will enable much more sophisticated human-robot collaborations and open up doors for robots to work alongside humans in human-centric environments – such as factories, hospitals and the entertainment business – in ways not possible before.

For updates on the project progress visit the CoCoMaps site.